Sunshine Coast RCMP reported the following for Jan. 8 to 14:
Lost Property
• On Jan. 8, a fundraising lottery board was lost, either along Pratt Road, Gibsons, or in the town of Gibsons. The homemade lottery board, described as a large piece of cardboard with one hundred squares on it, had names of buyers and a cellophane packet with a number of scratch tickets attached to it. Anyone with any information about this incident is asked to contact RCMP, reference police file 2019-169.
Traffic Incidents
• On Jan. 8, a passerby reported a single vehicle collision in the 13700 block of Highway 101, Pender Harbour, where the vehicle ended up in the ditch, striking a rock wall and causing a partial traffic obstruction. The driver did not report any serious injuries but the vehicle, which sustained severe damage, had to be towed. It appears that vehicle speed relative to the road conditions was a factor. The matter has been referred to ICBC.
Shoplifting
• On Jan. 10, a suspect was captured on security video stealing a large amount of Tic Tacs and Skittles candy at a business in the 5500 block of Wharf Road, Sechelt. The suspect returned the next day and was confronted by staff. The suspect was apologetic but has been banned from the business.
Attempted Break and Enter
• Sometime between Jan. 6 and 8, a suspect smashed a ground floor window at a residence in the 1500 block of Grandview Road, Gibsons. However, no entry was gained and no further damage or theft was reported.
Fraud
• On Jan. 10, a Coast resident reported a nearly successful fraud attempt after the resident received a call from a male purporting to be from the resident's bank. The male said that there had been some fraudulent activity on the resident's account and that police were requesting that the resident purchase $3,000 worth of gift cards as part of a scheme to catch the "fraudsters." The resident did as requested and awaited further instruction from the caller. Fortunately, before the scammer called back for the gift card activation codes, the resident grew suspicious and called his own bank directly. The bank confirmed that this was a scam, so the resident cancelled his bank card and is returning the gift cards for a refund. To learn more about this and other popular scams, please visit sites such as The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre at website at www.antifraudcentre-centreantifraude.ca or the Better Business Bureau at www.bbb.org. Please share this information with your friends and family.
• On Jan. 11, a Coast resident reported a scam after responding to an email that appeared to come from a local service provider she deals with regularly. The email offered "free samples" of a skin care line and that the resident only needed to provide her credit card information to pay for shipping and handling. The resident accepted the offer and provided her credit card info. The resident received her samples with no further information provided about the product or the company. Then the resident discovered her credit card was being charged a significant sum of money from the skin care company. This type of scam is extremely popular and often involves several countries, making it very difficult to recover any money. To learn more about this and other common scams, please visit sites such as The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre at website at www.antifraudcentre-centreantifraude.ca or the Better Business Bureau at www.bbb.org. Please share this information with your friends and family.
Found Property
• On Jan. 10, a found bike was reported at a business in the 5500 block of Wharf Avenue, Sechelt. Owner may claim within 90 days with detailed description. Please reference file 2019-217.
Possible Impaired Driver
• On Jan. 10, a witness reported a possible impaired driver in the 5700 block of Cowrie Street, Sechelt, after the vehicle was seen swerving in its lane. Police were unable to locate the vehicle on the road but due to several complaints received about the same vehicle, police will be following up with the registered owner.
– Sunshine Coast RCMP
